New transformable home is like LEGOs for grown-ups

Architect Michael Jantzen is known for creating “transformable” structures: buildings that an inhabitant can change or interact with on a physical level. Think of them as the high-art equivalent to a snail shell. After all, why keep your house in one place when you can hit the road and bring it with you? His latest project, the “M” series, features relocatable buildings that can be slapped together in infinite combinations to a matrix of modular support frames, creating totally customizable spaces. If you were a Lego freak as a child, you should probably stop reading and splash cold water on your face, ’cause yeah, this is totally big kid LEGOs.

The project is based on Jantzen’s “M-Vironment” technology, which consists of a giant, three-dimensional grid with seven cubes propped up on little stilts to which you can attach horizontal or vertical panels. Some of the panels have windows and insulation to enclose interior spaces, while others are left open, to be used as patios or open dining areas. Additional fold-out sections are contained within each panel to create seating areas, tables or beds. As an awesome “eco” bonus, the whole apparatus is designed to be self-sufficient, powered entirely by sun and wind energy.

One of the advantages of using the little foot pads is that the “M” house can be built over almost any terrain without a foundation, which means you can assemble your funky green house wherever suits your fancy. If nothing else, it would beat the pants off sleeping in your car every night during Coachella.